


Lived a Warrior

by mmouse15



Category: Transformers: Beast Wars
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-07-31
Updated: 2016-07-31
Packaged: 2018-07-28 08:38:47
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 582
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7632955
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mmouse15/pseuds/mmouse15
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Cheetor's thoughts on Dinobot's sacrifice after Code of Hero.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Lived a Warrior

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Skywinder](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Skywinder/gifts).



> A treat for [Skywinder](http://archiveofourown.org/users/Skywinder/profile) and the [Transformers Summer Gift Exchange](http://archiveofourown.org/collections/TFSummerEX/profile). I hope you don't mind.

Cheetor watched as Rattrap and Dinobot exchanged their last quips, bowing his head until Rattrap stood and snapped off a salute, joining the salute as all the Maximals did. The next morning, he joined Optimus Primal and Silverbolt in flying over as Rattrap and Rhinox destroyed Dinobot's remains.

For the next few solar cycles, Cheetor lost himself in thought. He'd struggled when Optimus Primal had let Dinobot rejoin them, and he hadn't understood why their leader had done so. Dinobot had betrayed them, sold them out and given one of the greatest treasures to Megatron. What had Optimus been thinking?

Cheetor looked up from the ground and was surprised to see Optimus walking next to him, looking around.

"Optimus! I was just, uh, thinking," Cheetor trailed off.

"Yes, Cheetor, I know. I was wondering if I might help you, since it seems you have been thinking in as many circles as you've been walking," Optimus replied.

"Oh! Oh," Cheetor finally looked around. He was on a well-worn path, which encircled the _Axalon_.

"Oh," he said again, abashed.

"Indeed," Optimus replied, indicating an entrance to the ship, "Rhinox has been kind enough to volunteer to take your patrol. Shall we?"

Cheetor nodded and entered, transforming as soon as he was within the protection of the ship. Optimus joined him, and they headed to the control room. Optimus nodded at a seat, and Cheetor slid into it.

"What's on your processor, Cheetor?" Optimus asked.

Cheetor wrung his hands as best he could before saying, "I don't understand, sir."

"What don't you understand?" Optimus said.

"Why did you let Dinobot come back?" Cheetor blurted out.

Optimus leaned back and thought for a while before slowing answering.

"He was going to continue to fight against Megatron, even if I hadn't let him come back to the _Axalon_. It seemed prudent to have him working with us, instead of letting him live in the wild. I also think he was struggling with a fundamental question of self, Cheetor, and I hoped that he could find answers here."

Cheetor thought for a time, then asked, "What question?"

Optimus quirked a small smile before he replied, "Who controls your destiny, Cheetor?"

"Well, I do. I mean, I take orders from you, and Rhinox, but I make my own choices," Cheetor answered.

"Do you? How can you be sure of that?" Optimus wanted to know.

"I don't have a god or somebody telling me what to do, Optimus."

"Does a god matter? If your destiny is already laid out, no matter what you do, you'll end up doing what you were preordained. Dinobot, he worried about that. He wanted his choices to matter, and so he gave the disk to Megatron, because he thought that was the least likely thing for him to do," Optimus told him.

Cheetor absorbed the information before asking, "But, why come back, then?"

"Because he'd done wrong, and he wanted to make it right," Optimus said gently.

A long silence fell between them.

"Optimus? Is our fate decided already?"

"I don't know, Cheetor."

Cheetor leaned back and asked the ceiling, "What can we do?"

Optimus replied, "Our best, every time. We honor our fallen, we hold true the values of our people, and we try to make choices that give the most freedom to the greatest number of people."

"Is it enough?" Cheetor wanted to know.

"It was for Dinobot, in the end," Optimus replied, standing to place a hand on Cheetor's shoulder.

_The End_


End file.
